Aim:

The aim of the lesson is to create a series of Google Earth polygons to
illustrate the impact of sea level change. These form the basis for a report
style assignment.
Click to enlarge the thumbnail below:

Main Activities

(3) Draw a sketch of the Gold Coast region, based on the overview placemark.
Use information from
the Layers Panel to annotate it. The most useful information from the panel
can be found under "Geographic
Web" as shown below. Other information
can be turned off.

(4) Create a series of polygons to represent sea level change, or use the
polygons here.

• Zoom to the desired level and turn on Terrain via the Layers
panel

• Choose Add Polygon from the top menu

• Use the mouse to click and drag nodes to create the polygon over the desired
area. The polygon appears white and the dialogue box appears:

• In the dialogue box name the polygon and add a description if desired.
Under
Style, change the colour (reds and purples work well) and set the opacity to
between 50 and 60%.
Under View click snapshot current view:

• Under Altitude,
move the slider to the desired sealevel height (e.g. 5m)
Select Relative
To Ground and then click OK to exit the dialogue. Create polygons to represent
1 5 and 10m sea level rises:

(5) Draw another sketch of the coastline to show how sea level change could affect
the Gold Coast.

(6) Assignment
Write a report or produce a presentation to describe the impact
of a 1m 5m and 10m rise
in sea
level
on
the region.
Use screenshots
from
Google
Earth
to illustrate the
report.

Plenary

Students could discuss whether it is feasible to protect the Gold Coast from
sea level rise with engineering solutions. There are several examples of large
scale coastal management engineering projects in the area including the Narrowneck
Reef and the Tweed Sand Bypass Project.